Gosselin: Highland Park-ex Stafford bears burden as top overall draft pick - take Detroit Lions to a title

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Louis DeLuca/Staff Photographer

No. 96. Nick Hayden/DT/27/6-4/295. Drafted out of Wisconsin by Carolina Panthers in sixth round of 2008 draft; Started 13 games in three seasons with Panthers; Signed as free agent with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2011; Missed 2012 season with an ankle injury. Signed by Cowboys as free agent on Feb. 13, 2013. Started all seven games at left tackle.

DETROIT — The privilege of becoming the first overall selection of an NFL draft lasts just one day for a quarterback.

Then reality sets in.

With privilege come expectations. Every first overall selection is expected to be the next John Elway or Troy Aikman. He is expected to become the face of the franchise, win passing titles, go to Pro Bowls, set records, win multiple Super Bowls, gain enshrinement in the Hall of Fame and then become a successful NFL general manager or celebrated television commentator.

No town was hungrier for such a success story than Detroit in 2009 when the Lions claimed Matthew Stafford, the pride of Highland Park High School, No. 1 overall. He will face his hometown Cowboys on Sunday.

Do you think there’s pressure on Tony Romo in Dallas? As the quarterback of the Cowboys, he is expected to follow in the footsteps of championship quarterbacks Roger Staubach and Aikman.

In Detroit, Stafford shoulders the pressure of having to forge his own path and create his own footsteps.

If you were a Detroiter born after 1957, you’ve never experienced a championship football season. Twenty-five franchises have celebrated titles since the Lions last won 56 years ago. The Packers have celebrated seven of them.

Detroit is one of only four franchises that has never experienced a Super Sunday, along with the Cleveland Browns and two expansion teams, the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars. But those other three teams have all won a playoff game since Detroit’s last postseason triumph in 1991.

“This is a great sports town,” Stafford said. “They love the Red Wings, Tigers, Pistons, Lions. But the one they’ve been waiting on the longest is us. We’re doing our best to give them something to cheer about, something to be proud of.”

The historic failings of the Lions can be traced to one position. Quarterback represents about 70 percent of an NFL championship equation. The Lions haven’t had greatness at the position since Hall of Famer Bobby Layne, another Highland Park grad, in the 1950s.

The Lions have had great runners, great blockers and great defenses over the years. But since winning that last title in 1957, the Lions have had only one quarterback selected to one Pro Bowl — Greg Landry in 1972.

Enter Stafford. Not only was he asked to create his own path, he was asked to erase the paths of Chuck Long, Andre Ware and Joey Harrington, all former first-round picks of the Lions who failed miserably at quarterback since Landry.

Now five years into his own career, Stafford still hasn’t won a passing title. He hasn’t been to a Pro Bowl. He hasn’t taken his team to a Super Bowl. He hasn’t even won a playoff game.

But Stafford hasn’t let his city down. His powerful right arm gives the Lions a chance every time out. He’s the reason the 4-3 Lions are three-point favorites Sunday against the 4-3 Cowboys.

Stafford became a walk-in starter as a rookie on a team coming off an 0-16 season. He finished each of his first two years on injured reserve, missing a combined 19 games. But in his first healthy season in 2011, Stafford passed for 5,038 yards and 41 touchdowns, steering the Lions to 10 wins and their first playoff berth in 12 years.

Only four quarterbacks in NFL history have passed for 5,000 yards in a season: Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Dan Marino and Stafford. Yet Stafford was snubbed in the Pro Bowl voting that season.

At 25, Stafford already ranks second in franchise history in passing yards to Layne. It’s a record he’ll likely own by Thanksgiving. And only two quarterbacks, Brees and Peyton Manning, have passed for more yards than Stafford this season.

Stafford’s best seasons are still ahead of him. He has plenty of time to achieve greatness.

Terry Bradshaw, the first overall pick of the 1970 draft, didn’t go to his first Pro Bowl until his seventh season. Manning, the first overall pick of the 1998 season, didn’t go to a Super Bowl until his ninth season. Elway didn’t win a Super Bowl until his 15th season.

But for every Elway, there is a JaMarcus Russell. For every Aikman, there is a David Carr. For every Manning, there is a Tim Couch.

Detroit fans no longer want to hear it. They’ve waited long enough. They want, hope and expect Stafford to be their Aikman. He knows the checklist of expectations. Bring it on, he says.

“That’s what I expect of myself anyways,” Stafford said. “I don’t go into a game or a season hoping to be good enough to win. I want to be one of the greats, the best player I can possibly be.”

The arm is there. Now he needs the rings.

Listen to Rick Gosselin at 10:50 a.m. Tuesdays on The Ticket (KTCK-AM 1310) with Norm Hitzges.

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About Rick Gosselin

MOST UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE ON THE JOB:
Sitting at the hotel bar with Jerry Jones that night in Orlando, Fla., in March 1994 when he decided he'd had enough of Jimmy Johnson as coach of the Cowboys.

SOMETHING PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT ME:I played hockey for a media all-star team in Detroit and once scored a goal against the Detroit Red Wings Old-Timers in a charity game at Olympia. As a high school player, I once scored a hat trick in a game at the Olympia. Love those "Original Six" buildings.

IF I HAD TWO SPARE HOURS, I WOULD:Take a golf lesson and learn how to hit a driver.

MOST MEMORABLE SPORTING EVENT I'VE COVERED:Impossible to pick just one, so I'll give you five, in no particular order:
- 1, My first Super Bowl - X between the Cowboys and Steelers.
- 2, 1983 NCAA basketball championship game between North Carolina State and Houston.
- 3, 1984 Orange Bowl between Miami and Nebraska.
- 4, 1971 baseball All-Star Game in Detroit, where all the future Hall of Famers homered and Reggie Jackson banged one off the light tower.
- 5, Speedskater Bonnie Blair's world-record sprints at 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.
- Honorable mention: Troy Aikman's first college start as a freshman at Oklahoma against Kansas. (He lost.)

Hometown: Detroit

Education: Graduated from Michigan State in 1972, then spent two years working news for United Press International in Detroit, two years working for UPI sports in New York, nine years working as UPI's Midlands sports editor in Kansas City, four years as Chiefs/NFL beat reporter for the Kansas City Star, two years as Cowboys writer for The Dallas Morning News and 12 years as the NFL writer for The News.